So this is crazy, but I couldn't find any past thread noting donations that Boomer had made to the zoo reef project. Well, that ends now. He brought a sweet bag full of tools to help restock the workbench in the fishroom! All sorts of awesome stuff that I'm sure will come in super handy. No way to put a specific monetary value on it, but there it is. Boom. Thanks Boomer!

The last time the zoo "sold some frags" from the frag tank, they received all the cash. Tonight, I purchased 2 frags from the zoo, and per LSMAC's standard "frag pricing" policy ($10 each, 2 for $15, 3 for $20, 4 for $25...on up to 10 for $50); I've placed $15 into the Club's salsa jar...

Tonight's meeting went well, and some interesting problems were uncovered. Apparently the RO/DI system is in need of maintenance. 48 hours prior, the pressure gauge had started leaking; it turns out that it is fully broken (after removing it and returning it and restoring water, it actually partially filled with water). So this needs to be replaced, or a cap needs to be installed on the line where it resides.

The second interesting thing pertaining to the RO/DI system is that the DI resin is not only exhausted (despite most still showing the original coloration), but it was in fact leaching things back into the water (the water out of the RO was around 2-4 ppm TDS, but once passing through the DI, it was at 11 ppm!). So, we bypassed the DI unit for the time being, drained the water in the holding tank, and the staff will have to refill. We've come to the conclusion that the DI resin AND both RO cartridges should be replaced at this time.

James C and Sarah C were back after a 3 month absence, as was Boomer - always happy to see folks show up. Ben was there talking about his 2019 expo plans...could be very exciting for Duluth!

Problematic algae seems to be roaring back, and thinking things through, one of the things that was changed in the past few months was switching to the powdered calcium and alkalinity supplements Reef Calcium and Reef Builders from Seachem. Boomer noted that one of these contains some organics, and that could be a source of fuel for the algae. I also think the RO/DI could be playing a role as well. So...we discussed switching the Zoo's calcium and alkalinity supplementation to simply dosing Kalkwasser, which has the added side benefit of removing phosphate. There could be more at play here...but we need to get things wrangled.

All the recent fish put into QT didn't make it, which is a bit of a concern. The last remaining filefish was thin, so it came home with me to see if I can nurse it back.

James helped me plan out the pump installation for the saltwater mixing; I obtained the parts needed after the meeting at Mendard's, so next month's tasks will include setting up the replacement pump on the mixing station!

There is a LOT of stuff there, but over half the glass tanks were visibly cracked and trash (not even salvageable as vivarium/terrarium usage); by my count, there are 2 10's, and 2 29's (one of them drilled with a huge overflow) and there MAY be a 2nd 29 at the bottom of the stack that isn't cracked (But can't say for certain). There are several Marineland HOB BioWheel Filters (At least 3 or 4), and there is a rather interesting Acrylic setup; that setup alone may be worth $50 for the right person (kinda like a frag tank style...very odd, seems DIY, but seems solid). There is also some sort of biocube style tank, a larger size (eg. 24-29 gallon style) that seems to be not cracked, but is lacking all the pumps and other internals and no light.

For the person who wants to wade through this, you could maybe get a few tanks out of it. I ultimately declined the entire thing, not worth my time to wade through as really the only thing I wanted were the 10s...and I can buy those new for $10 at Petco. But...again...for the right person, there is enough here to make it worth your while if you want to set up a few tanks.

8/28/18 - donated a used Penn Plax Cascade Canister Filter to the zoo to replace the existing media reactor that has been a continual problem. While functional, we noted that it will need a new impeller. Also donated big, largely unused thing of DFS phosphate removal pads.

Just some notes; the bad algae is back, phosphates are up in the reef. This may be due to going for several months without a proper carbon reactor (since the two little fishies one developed another leak).

Sad to report that for unknown reasons, most of the new fish in QT died (all the damsels, and the angel!!!! ). The filefish pair remain. We also couldn't find one of the three Singapore angles in the main display; we may be down to 2 there.

We discovered that the Chiller was leaking, so most of our time was spent dealing with that; it sounds like our repair was successful.

We discovered that the Magnesium test on hand was faulty, and also expired by 3 years. That went in the trash, and they'll have to replace.

On the 28th, Megan was able to stop by my house and pick up a Penn Plax Cascade canister filter, which we will use to replace the media reactor. I also found a huge section of DFS Phosphate removing pads, so Megan and the team can work on getting the tank back into proper alignment. The filter's impeller was showing signs of wear and rust, so they know that part will need to be replaced ASAP.